- Mar 24, 2014
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My flock has a recurring respiratory illness that we're still in the process of tracking down. They've also had mites (all of them!) due to their weakened immune system. Those are under control now though.
My current problem is my top hen. Roughly a month after all my hens began their spring/summer laying again this hen began acting weird. She would follow them into the nesting boxes and stare at them, sing egg songs, or run around screaming and acting like she needed to lay an egg. She would never settle into the nest and would be restless all day. She then became frantic to come inside and nest. She would almost panic about it. She jumps at the sliding door, pecks at it, screams all through the yard, and if I open the door even an inch she runs at full speed and physically shoves me out of the way to get in. She will literally go all day until every single other hen has finished laying before she will even think to settle down. If she gets inside she runs to her "nest" and makes "I found treats" noises while she settles in. An hour or so later she will leave and act like she had laid an egg even though she hadn't. That went on for a while before she laid an actual egg. Most of the time it's a pretend egg. After she nests she will be fine for up to three days before the cycle starts again.
The last week has been even weirder. She will come in and nest, leave, then about twenty minutes later come screaming to the door again so she can go back and nest. It doesn't matter if she's laid a real egg or not. The last few days when I've let her in she's been panting and in an absolute panic to go back and nest. She will make frantic noises and hurry to settle down like she's gotta pee real bad. She then continues her nesting for an hour or so before going outside.
What the heck is going on??? Could it be the illness that's caused it? She went through a phase where she was a bit more aggressive, but she's settled down now that she's regularly begun nesting. Her feathers have gotten a bit glossier and more pointed. For a while I thought she was turning into a rooster. Some of my hens do have pale combs right now, but she seems healthy from what I can tell. No mites, no congestion, no swelling of her stomach or stuck egg. Her comb is a healthy red and she's very active/happy. I've been giving them added calcium and protein to see if that helps. No changes yet though. I've already dropped $15K on vet bills over the last year so I can't really afford to get an ultrasound of her egg laying bits.
She came inside about twenty minutes ago panting with her wings out. I've given her ice water, put her nest over the AC vent, and made sure she has plenty of air circulation. She just came into the living room panting with her wings out still. The AC has been running and her nesting basket was cool inside so I have no idea why she's still panting.
My current problem is my top hen. Roughly a month after all my hens began their spring/summer laying again this hen began acting weird. She would follow them into the nesting boxes and stare at them, sing egg songs, or run around screaming and acting like she needed to lay an egg. She would never settle into the nest and would be restless all day. She then became frantic to come inside and nest. She would almost panic about it. She jumps at the sliding door, pecks at it, screams all through the yard, and if I open the door even an inch she runs at full speed and physically shoves me out of the way to get in. She will literally go all day until every single other hen has finished laying before she will even think to settle down. If she gets inside she runs to her "nest" and makes "I found treats" noises while she settles in. An hour or so later she will leave and act like she had laid an egg even though she hadn't. That went on for a while before she laid an actual egg. Most of the time it's a pretend egg. After she nests she will be fine for up to three days before the cycle starts again.
The last week has been even weirder. She will come in and nest, leave, then about twenty minutes later come screaming to the door again so she can go back and nest. It doesn't matter if she's laid a real egg or not. The last few days when I've let her in she's been panting and in an absolute panic to go back and nest. She will make frantic noises and hurry to settle down like she's gotta pee real bad. She then continues her nesting for an hour or so before going outside.
What the heck is going on??? Could it be the illness that's caused it? She went through a phase where she was a bit more aggressive, but she's settled down now that she's regularly begun nesting. Her feathers have gotten a bit glossier and more pointed. For a while I thought she was turning into a rooster. Some of my hens do have pale combs right now, but she seems healthy from what I can tell. No mites, no congestion, no swelling of her stomach or stuck egg. Her comb is a healthy red and she's very active/happy. I've been giving them added calcium and protein to see if that helps. No changes yet though. I've already dropped $15K on vet bills over the last year so I can't really afford to get an ultrasound of her egg laying bits.
She came inside about twenty minutes ago panting with her wings out. I've given her ice water, put her nest over the AC vent, and made sure she has plenty of air circulation. She just came into the living room panting with her wings out still. The AC has been running and her nesting basket was cool inside so I have no idea why she's still panting.
